The Thread® - Books and Literary News

The Thread from MPR News

The Thread® is your source for book recommendations and other literary news.

Ask a Bookseller

Ask a Bookseller is a weekly series where The Thread checks in with booksellers around the country about their favorite books of the moment. Listen to Ask a Bookseller to find your next favorite book.

Big Books and Bold Ideas

Big Books and Bold Ideas is a weekly series hosted by Kerri Miller every Friday at 11 a.m., featuring conversations about books and other literary ideas. Listen to Big Books and Bold Ideas here.

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Sign up for The Thread newsletter to get reading recommendations from Kerri Miller and other bookworms around the MPR newsroom. Find reviews for new releases, as well as hidden gems you may have missed.

Talking Volumes

Talking Volumes is back for its 25th season. Join us at the Fitzgerald Theater for four special events with renowned authors, celebrating our anniversary with a special $25 ticket price for MPR members and Star Tribune subscribers. Buy tickets here.

From the archives: Ecologist Suzanne Simard on understanding the wisdom of forests
This Friday, Kerri Miller will look back at some fantastic science-themed conversations she’s had on Big Books and Bold Ideas. To whet your appetite, here’s yet another science-based discussion. In this one, Miller talks to ecologist Suzanne Simard about the wisdom of the forest.
Ask a Bookseller: 'The Ogress and the Orphans' leaves you filled with hope
Katy Herbold of Sidekick Coffee & Books in Iowa City recommends “The Ogress and the Orphans” by Minneapolis writer Kelly Barnhill. Herbold called the middle-grade novel "a family read-aloud" that she predicts will be an instant classic.
Louise Erdrich among 6 finalists for literary Women's Prize
The 23rd novel by acclaimed American author Louise Erdrich and an adult fiction debut by Trinidadian stand-up comedian Lisa Allen-Agostini are among finalists for the $38,000 Women’s Prize for fiction. 
From the archives: Theologian Jemar Tisby on how the American church should grapple with racism
Theologian Christena Cleveland’s new book, “God is a Black Woman,” explores how the Black, sacred feminine transformed her faith. A conversation about her pilgrimage is coming up on Friday. To whet your appetite, we’ve pulled a discussion MPR News host Kerri Miller had with Jemar Tisby in 2021. They talked about white American Christians’ complicity in racism.
Ask a Bookseller: 'The Verifiers'
Angela Schwesnedl of Moon Palace Books in Minneapolis recommends Jane Pek's novel "The Verifiers.” Schwesnedl says it raises questions about the people we meet online and the data that we may unknowingly share.
Novelist Don Winslow on going home
Don Winslow is launching another masterful trilogy. This time, he relies on Greek literature to inspire an epic crime saga that follows the journey of a crime family from Rhode Island, where Winslow himself grew up.
From the archives: Don Winslow on the war on drugs
As we anticipate a conversation with novelist Don Winslow this Friday, we throwback to the last time he spoke with MPR News host Kerri Miller. In 2019, they discussed the conclusion to his trilogy that detailed the drug cartels and the lives of the investigators who pursue them.